The Great Australian dinner with Rene Redzepi

As part of October's Good Food Month celebration, the Great Australian dinner with Rene Redzepi is one of the most exciting culinary events of the year. A fascinating feast of Australian flavours from David Chang, Mark Best, Kylie Kwong, Ben Greeno, Brent Savage, Neil Perry, James Viles, Martin Benn, Peter Gilmore, Dan Hunter, and of course the extraordinary Rene Redzepi from Noma, three times Number 1 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, and currently Number 2.

Each of the 10 most inspiring chefs in Australia prepared canapes served with drinks on arrival. The canapes showcased some of Australia's best native produce, such as kangaroo, wallaby, lobster sashimi, oysters, to something more exotic, like edible insects from Kylie Kwong. This lady is completely obsessed with adding bugs to every dish and I believe she spiked Rene's dish with ants while he went for his interview (just joking). Being bold and brave, Mr M tried all the bugs and commented that they are crunchy like chips. Kylie heard his comment and told him that "they are healthier than chips!" :P

After trying out all the amazing canapes and mingling with some of the most remarkable chefs in Australia (in the likes of Peter Gilmore, Mark Best and Neil Perry), we are invited into the dining room inside the Star Event Centre. Rene Redzepi prepared the first course: Alliums lighted cooked. Allium refers to the onion and garlic family, and this dish is completed with Australian ingredients such as green ants, rosella buds, salt bush, riberries and samphire. Rene said with the exception to onions, he has never worked with any of the ingredients in the dish before! It is a dish with interesting texture and flavour - erring on the sour side of things, quite an acquired taste I would say. 

The mains are cooked by the remaining 10 participating chefs (9 Aussie chefs and 1 grumpy American as Rene called David Chang :P). Each chef created their own personal expression of Australian cuisine and each table is served the same main. The main dish you get depends on the table you are at. Browsing through the menu, there are several mains I had my eyes on - Marrion in the shell with seaweed butter, roasted cauliflower, fermented mushrooms, confit potatoes and parson's nose (David Chang), Wagyu short rib with lettuce, eggplant and seaweed (Ben Greeno) and Kurobuta pork belly with macadamia sauce and wattle crumb (Brent Savage). Being a picky eater, there are also a few that I'd rather stay away from: smoked native oysters, bar cod and wallaby tail with roasted mealworm cake (you've probably guessed who's behind this dish). 

When the waiting staff came and told us they are from Sepia and our table would be getting the charcoal-smoked marron from Martin Benn, our entire table looked pleased. After the first bite, I am in heaven. The West Australian marron is so fresh and perfectly cooked over Japanese charcoal. The marriage of flavour is simply amazing with the sweet and citrus yuzu curd. It has got to be my favourite dish tonight and a dish I will be dreaming about every now and then. At this moment, I thank God for the couple that asked us to swap tables with them so that they could sit with their family from out of town. 

Ben Greeno, who currently works at Momofuku and interestingly enough is the first chef Rene Redzepi recruited at Noma, is responsible for our dessert. He created a dish of blackened pear, sunflower seed puree and chocolate spiked caramel. As Ben explains, it's Australian in a way that it's light and sunny and a dish that hopefully makes people smile. And it certainly made us smile. 

It had been such an extraordinary evening to not only watch amazing chefs work their magic, but also to meet delightful food enthusiasts - 2 at our table have dined at Noma and shared their fascinating experience there with us. Most of us at our table thought one thing they could do differently is to let everyone taste a selection of main dishes, rather than just one. But I still believe Martin Benn's marron dish would be pretty hard to beat. 

Enjoy the photos :)

Outside on the beautiful balcony at the Star

Native oyster crème, sea lettuce, lemon aspen - James Viles

Bread by the Bread & Butter Project.
Extra virgin olive oil: premium hojiblanca from Cobram Estate. 

Neil Perry

Peter Gilmore

Our favourite Masterchef Adam Liaw

Kylie Kwong promoting edible insects!

Live green tree ants - yes, live and running around!!

  

Roasted baby crickets 

Dehydrated earthworms

   

Some interesting native Australian ingredients for tasting

Rosella marshmallow with pepperberry - Mark Best

Momofuku sous chefs dishing up their canape

Smoked eel and apple - Ben Greeno & David Chang

M's fav... Sashimi of local lobster, grapefruit,
green almonds, bergamot jam - Peter Gilmore

Brent Savage from Bentley Restaurant & Bar promoting Kangaroo meat

Kangaroo tartare with horseradish - Brent Savage

L Loves... Bonito, flavours of roasted chicken,
salted plum, green tea, nori - Martin Benn

Steamed biodynamic siu mai of marron, goji berry,
dehydrated Australian black ants, organic Korean fish sauce.
You've guessed it, this one is by Kylie Kwong

Wallaby, flax and wattle seed - Dan Hunter

We caught Rene Redzepi doing an interview during intermission

Rene Redzepi during his photoshoot

Rene Redzepi during his interview

The sit down dinner begins

Rene being interviewed in the busy kitchen

First Course by Rene Redzepi: Alliums lighted cooked 

  

David Chang giving his thoughts on Australian cuisine

Martin Benn explaining the concept behind his utterly delicious marron dish

L Loves... Main course by Martin Benn:
Charcoal-smoked Western Australian marron, yuzu curd,
sea samphire, lemon aspen, ginger, shiso and shell powder

L Loves... Main course by Martin Benn: Charcoal-smoked Western Australian marron, 
yuzu curd, sea samphire, lemon aspen, ginger, shiso and shell powder

  

10 of the most inspiring chefs in Australia, along with Rene Redzepi &
"that grumpy American" (aka David Chang) as referred to by Rene

Terry Durack, chief restaurant critic for SMH 

  

Festival Director Joanna Savill and Rene Redzepi

Ben Greeno explaining the inspirations behind his dessert

Plating up the beautiful dessert

L Loves... Dessert by Ben Greeno: Pear, sunflower and caramel 

Rockpool bar and grill - a piece of Gotham City in Sydney

The exterior of the art deco building, which the restaurant is situated in, is somewhat reminiscent of Gotham City Hall from Batman. When we entered inside, the grand marble columns and the elevated ceiling, along with the striking display of shimmering Riedel glasses made us lift our heads up high in admiration (meanwhile quietly reminding ourselves to not let our jaws drop, at least not until we met the food). Yes, this is Rockpool bar and grill – crowned Sydney’s Best New Restaurant in 2010 and has held the two hat status since.

Tonight we dined in the semi-private dining area. First thing I noted, despite how extravagant the surroundings are, is the darkness in the room which meant reading the menu may be a challenge for some (also meant sorry for the quality of the photos). The menu was thankfully printed on A3 paper (with a stylish female silhouette on the back of the menu). It contained an extensive list of cold and hot starters, salads, pastas, charcoal seafood and wood fired meat. The prices of mains on offer ranged anywhere between $25 and $115. I had quite a few recommendations of the 9+ marble score wagyu, however at $115 a dish, it almost had to be backed up by a special occasion. So given tonight was just a catch up dinner, we decided to forego the wagyu... actually we gave up beef entirely – the attitude of “if we can’t have the best, we won’t settle for the rest” :P

Rockpool Bar and Grill House Rules
Found at the very first page of the drinks menu

As soon as our order was taken, we were served baguette-like bread, which had a nice crunch, a chewy texture and a great depth of flavour. And the butter, did I mention that butter, it was gooooood :)

Complimentary bread and butter served on a block of wood

Alaskan King Crab Cocktail

Warm Salad of Wood Fire Grilled Quail
with Braised Dried Figs, Walnuts and Fresh Herbs

The quail is broken down to pieces and hidden amongst the salad, figs and walnuts. Unfortunately I found the braised dried figs to be a tad too sweet for my liking and buried the flavour of the not-so-tasty quail. 

Milk Fed Pure Suffolk Lamb with Fried Artichoke and Aioli 

While the quail is tender but lacked the burst of flavour, the lamb had good flavours but is dry and slightly overcooked. Maybe we should have ordered beef after all…

Rock Flathead

Spicy Mussel and Saffron Stew with Wood Fired Seafood and Aioli

Duck Ragu with Pappardelle

The duck is succulent and pappardelle pasta is mellow and slippery. While the main dishes are pleasant, nothing is remarkable. To me, the side dishes delivered more surprises. The braised winter greens is indeed a hearty winter dish – I can imagine tucking into this in front of a fireplace at home. The sautéed mixed mushroom had an enticing aroma and is packed with earthy mushroom and garlic butter flavours. It is the most expensive side dish on the menu ($25), but I would definitely recommend it, especially if you are a mushroom fan like me!

Winter Greens Braised with Garlic, Chilli and Anchovie

L Loves... Sautéed Mixed Mushrooms

Moving on to desserts, I must first comment on the lovely service we've had, up till this point. The waiter who had served us provided sleek and professional service. However the waitress who served our desserts completely turned this around. When she came with the dessert my cousin had ordered, I tried to be helpful and gestured that it was for my cousin, who was sitting opposite me. It happened that she was placing the dessert where my hand was moving to and before I knew it, she said out loud “I hate it when people do that!!” 

“ @#%!&#? Excuse me?” I said in my mind… But before I recovered from this astonishment she had disappeared (smart move)!

So how are the desserts? They are delightful! I loved the refreshing blood orange sorbet and the slightly sour yoghurt cream inside the crisp candied brandy snaps. They are just wonderful. Mr M, being a true Aussie, who not only checked the footy scores throughout dinner, but also ordered the good old pavlova which he thoroughly enjoyed (as it comforted his broken heart from Aussie's loss to NZ- interestingly everyone at the table was Kiwi except Mr M)!  

L Loves... Blood Orange Sorbet with Yoghurt Cream Brandy Snaps

Passionfruit Pavlova

Passionfruit Marshmallows

Macchiato and complementary caramel popcorn

L's Verdict:

• Taste: 7.5/10 
• Ambience: 4/5 (would be a 5 if it wasn't so dark!)
•  Value: 3/5
• Service: 3.5/5 (I'd like to think the desserts waitress had a bad day)
•  Creativity and other WOW factors: 3/5  

Overall rating: 21/30

Rockpool Bar and Grill

66 Hunter Street

Sydney NSW 2000

Ph: (02) 8078 1900

Lunch: Mon to Fri 12pm to 3pm

Dinner Mon to Sat 6pm to 11pm

Visited August 2011

Friendly advice: Try the Wagyu burger at the bar – awarded by Time Out as the best burger against the likes of Four In Hand and Charlie & Co.

There are no reservations for bar tables and an all-day bar menu is available Monday to Friday from noon to 11pm and Saturday from 6pm till late.